LIGHT + BUILDING 2018Light Plug

Is "Plug & Light" ushering in a new era in lighting installations? At the Light + Building, an alliance of manufacturers Gira, Jung, Insta and Brumberg presented a system based on an innovative light socket.

3/28/2018

Would you install your own sockets when you move into a new apartment? Certainly not! The standardised and - at least nationwide - uniform current outlets allow the consumer to connect his electrical devices without difficulty by means of a very simple plug process. This is not the case with electric light: every luminaire that is not supplied via a socket, for example because it is to be operated via light switches, requires a complex installation and cabling process. On the one hand, this leads to enormous inflexibility, because "what hangs, hangs". On the other hand, many landlords are flabbergasted when the tenants have perforated ceilings and bathroom tiles like a Swiss cheese to hang up their lamps. So wouldn't it make sense to launch a uniform and intuitive interface for lighting?

Jung and Gira, respectively their joint subsidiary Insta, seem to have come to exactly this conclusion. The three companies presented the result of these considerations, the "Plug & Light" system, together at the Light + Building 2018 in Frankfurt am Main. The heart of the system is the so-called light socket. It can be inserted into any commercially available European switch box. All luminaires compatible with the system can then be docked onto the light socket and fixed using magnets. The light socket not only supplies the light attachment with electricity, but also communicates with it. As a result, the luminaire can be dimmed immediately without flickering. Control from higher systems, such as a smart home network, is also possible. And, of course, all plugged in lights can be replaced in one easy step.

For the premiere, Insta has developed four different light attachments: a spotlight, a pendant luminaire, a floodlight and a so-called "Lichtmaschine" (alternator), which can be combined with various lampshades. The light socket and the floodlight are available in the switch design of the "LS 990", "A creation" and "LS Zero" series from Jung and the "E2" series from Gira."Plug & Light" is designed as an open system. Other manufacturers are invited to join the group and develop compatible luminaires and switch series. The success of the idea will mainly depend on whether "Plug & Light" will be able to establish itself on the market. Brumberg was the first to join the founding members. At its stand at Light + Building, the manufacturer from Westphalia already presented its first luminaire prototypes for the system. (fap)